The last 2 decades have witnessed a revolution in the treatment of esophageal achalasia. Nowadays, laparoscopic Heller myotomy with partial fundoplication is considered in most centers the primary treatment modality, while endoscopic treatment, i.e. pneumatic dilatation, is mainly reserved for the management of patients unfit for surgery or in case of surgical failure. Recently, a new approach ...

HYPOTHESIS High-grade dysplasia (HGD) of the gastric epithelium is associated with high prevalence of invasive carcinoma, and distinction by endoscopic biopsy is difficult. DESIGN Cohort study, 1996 to 2003. SETTING Tertiary care center. PATIENTS Consecutive sample of 22 patients with initial diagnosis of gastric HGD by endoscopic biopsy. Biopsy specimens were separately reviewed by 3 exp...

Introduction: Glomus tympanicum (GT) is a benign primary tumor of the middle ear. The evolution of endoscopic ear surgery has allowed for an alternative approach to managing this vascular tumor. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an endoscopic approach in GT surgery, and also to investigate its applicability and feasibility.   Materials and Methods: Prospectively, 13 class I and II patie...

CONTEXT Cystic dystrophy in heterotopic pancreas is a rare and serious condition. Diagnosis is difficult because of non-specific clinical manifestations and radiologic and endoscopic imaging are pivotal. Therapeutic management is still under debate. CASE REPORT We describe a case of cystic dystrophy of the duodenal wall in heterotopic pancreas complicated with chronic pancreatitis and pancrea...

Early diagnosis followed by primary repair is the best treatment for spontaneous esophageal perforation. However, the appropriate management of esophageal leakage after surgical repair is still controversial. Recently, the successful adaptation of vacuum-assisted closure therapy, which is well established for the treatment of chronic surface wounds, has been demonstrated for esophageal perforat...